Market Development


These are early days for the UK pellet market. In other countries, however, it is well established, and expanding rapidly. In North America, over 60 pellet mills produce over 680,000 tonnes of pellets per year supplying half a million domestic customers and many larger scale users. Nearly a million tonnes a year are produced by over 30 mills in Sweden, Europe's leading pellet user. In both these cases, the market has developed in the last 15 years. Denmark has also seen a massive take up of pellet fuel in the last 10 years with annual consumption over half a million tonnes, much of which is imported from neighbouring countries. In Austria, the market has boomed from its introduction in 1997 to about 20,000 boiler and stoves installed by 2003.

There is now an emerging pellet industry in the UK with pockets of activity in a number of regions. Pellets are now produced in the UK by Welsh Biofuels and Egni in South Wales, Premier Waste in Durham and on a smaller scale, by Renewable Heat and Power Ltd in Devon. A number of European and North American manufacturers are also willing to export pellets in bulk to the UK.

Brands of Swedish, Danish and Austrian pellet fired boilers and several makes of pellet stove from Europe and North America are now available in the UK. There are currently two UK manufactures of wood pellet boilers based in Suffolk and Staffordshire.

Being a source of renewable energy, wood pellets are exempt from the Climate Change Levy.

The successful development of a pellet market depends on many factors and requires effort from commercial and public bodies together. A key requirement is to build public confidence through the supply of high quality fuel to well designed and installed combustion equipment.

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